The most memorable college football finishes since “Hail Flutie”

Thirty-one years ago, Doug Flutie heaved his way into the history books.

"The Hail Flutie," which celebrates its anniversary Monday, was a last-ditch attempt for Boston College against Miami with six seconds remaining on the clock.

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Wide receiver Gerard Phelan was covered in the end zone, but somehow the pass made it into his awaiting arms. As the CBS announcers called it on that November day, what happened was truly unbelievable.

Heralded as one of the greatest plays in the history of college football, Flutie's touchdown pass headlines a long list of memorable finishes.

Here are some of the greatest college football endings in the 31 years since "Hail Flutie."

Penn State-Miami Fiesta Bowl (1987)

For the first time, the college football season was extended past New Year's Day, and the top two teams in the country were facing off.

As the No. 1 squad, Miami came in the heavy favorites, sporting an NFL-ready team with Heisman winner Vinny Testaverde under center and Alonzo Highsmith and Michael Irvin as key offensive pieces.

No. 2 Penn State shocked No. 1 Miami in the 1987 Fiesta Bowl with a last second interception. (JIM GERBERICH/AP)

Penn State featured some lesser-known names, including QB John Shaffer, who was a remarkably steady college signal caller but far from a star. Throughout this game, Miami stifled the Nittany Lions' passing game, but crucial turnovers left the Hurricanes trailing on their final drive.

Down by four, Testaverde had his team at second-and-goal with 45 seconds left. It looked like the magic was over for Penn State.

But Testaverde was sacked on second, threw an incompletion on third and found himself in a bind on fourth down with 18 seconds left, needing to find the end zone. Instead, he found Penn State linebacker Pete Giftopoulos, who picked off the pass and preserved the Nittany Lion win.

Colorado received a gift in the form of a fifth down in a matchup against Missouri 25 years ago.

The Buffaloes were trailing by four and had the ball at Missouri's goal line with 40 seconds to go. After a failed attempt at the end zone on second, Colorado called a timeout and during the break, the sideline crew forgot to flip the marker to note that it was third down.

When quarterback Charles Johnson returned to the field, he saw second down still displayed, so Colorado ran the ball again and was stuffed. Believing it was third down due to the mistake, they then spiked the ball to stop the clock (which should have ended the game, because this was fourth in reality).

Instead, Johnson had an extra down that he used to barely squeeze into the end zone. Neither side was immediately sure whether Johnson had been stopped or made it across, so fans of both teams stormed the field. Eventually the officials ruled it a game-winning score, even after recognizing the egregious mistake on downs.

The Miracle at Michigan (1994)

This time Colorado completed an improbable comeback with the correct number of downs.

The Buffaloes scored two touchdowns in the final two minutes, the second of which was a 64-yard Hail Mary to rival Flutie's that put the flourish on a wild finish.

Kordell Stewart dropped back with six seconds remaining and danced around in the pocket before flinging a pass that fell just short of the end zone. It was tipped in front of the goal line, giving it another moment of air-time before the ball was grabbed by Michael Westbrook, sealing the victory.

The Bears clung to a three-point lead with seconds remaining and the ball in their hands. This game was all but decided.

In a particularly baffling move, Baylor head coach Kevin Steele called for a run play handed off to Darrell Bush. UNLV forced a fumble at the goal line, and Kevin Thomas returned it 99 yards for a game-winning touchdown.

Steele's inexplicable excuse represented an over-confident attitude — he wanted his team to "line up and get after people."

"I have an explanation, but it doesn't hold water," he said afterwards.

Tigers' QB Marcus Randall had other ideas at his own 26-yard line with a daunting two seconds on the clock.

Three Wildcat defenders were in range to pick off Randall's heave, but none of them could complete the job.

The ball was tipped twice before LSU receiver Devery Henderson eventually caught it. He tip-toed away from a shoestring tackle and ran untouched into the end zone for the game winner, and a Kentucky team that was already celebrating the win was left stunned.

2006 Rose Bowl

Two unbeaten teams clashed in this BCS Championship game.

It was the first college football game to feature two Heisman Trophy winners on the same starting lineup in USC's Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush.

The Trojans entered the game on a 34-game winning streak that would soon be snapped by Vince Young and his Longhorns, who orchestrated a remarkable comeback, carrying his team from down two scores with 6:42 left.

Facing a fourth-and-five at the nine-yard line, Young was out of options when he saw his receivers tightly covered, so he took off for the sideline and raced into the end zone to give his team a one-point lead. He then completed the two-point conversion, and USC had no answer with only 19 seconds to get within field goal range.

Leinart left the Rose Bowl with only the second loss of his college career.

Statue Left (2007)

A fierce back-and-forth Fiesta Bowl between Boise State and Oklahoma was sent into overtime.

Adrian Peterson scored on the first play of the extra period for the Sooners, leaving Boise State with the opportunity to answer or go home in defeat.

The Broncos used a trick play on fourth down to find tight end Derek Schouman in the end zone, but kicking an extra point would only have sent the game into a second overtime. Boise State elected for another deception.

When all signs pointed to QB Jared Zabransky passing to his right, he faked in that direction and handed off to running back Ian Johnson, who went left around an unsuspecting Oklahoma defense for the game-winning two-point conversion.

The Kick Six (2013)

With two of the top-five nationally ranked teams facing off in the Iron Bowl, a down-to-the-wire finish was expected, if not a given, but nobody could have predicted this finish.

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With one second remaining, Auburn’s Chris Davis returned a short field goal attempt 100 yards for the game-winning touchdown over Alabama. (AP)

Auburn tied the game at 28 late in the fourth, but Alabama lined up for a 57-yard field goal attempt with one second remaining.

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Adam Griffith got the kick off cleanly, but it fell short, right into the arms of Chris Davis. The Auburn native then took off, narrowly evading Alabama defenders chasing after him with everything on the line.

With 10 seconds left, No. 12 Michigan held a two-point lead and was preparing to punt the ball far — far enough to ensure that no hijinks could steal away a huge rivalry win.

Everything went topsy turvy when punter Blake O'Neil bobbled the snap. Defensive back Jalen Watts-Jackson, with little experience ever touching the football in a game, picked it up and ran 38 yards the other way into the end zone.

Michigan State defensive back Jalen Watts-Jackson was mobbed by his teammates after returning a fumble for a game-winning touchdown against rival Michigan. (Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)

The celebration was short-lived for Watts-Jackson, who dislocated his hip when his teammates piled on top of him. But the rest of the Spartans were hard-pressed to find anything that could take away from that moment of ecstasy.

"You go from 10 seconds, a guy punting the ball, you're thinking OK this is done," Michigan head coach Mark Dantonio said after the game. "And then all of a sudden, life gets flipped upside down."